Stroller Bag - Old T-shirt Upcycle!

**DISCLOSURE: PICTURE INTENSE**

I'm back with a sewing post! This Sunday, we will be participating in the local MS Walk for Multiple Sclerosis. We have a team formed and we have a young team member who will be "walking" in a stroller. For that reason, I made a stroller bag to hold goodies--like sunscreen (it's supposed to be warm), wallet, keys, etc. that would be difficult to reach in the bottom basket while on the move. The MS Society uses Orange and black in its logo, so I asked my hubs for an old t-shirt to upcycle into this beauty:

So the stroller bag itself is not an original idea. I've seen many different kinds on Etsy and Pinterest, but I am not a fantastic seamstress, and I needed something I could throw together for very little cost (orange isn't exactly my favorite color). Enter husband's field attire for his previous employer! Cost = FREE! I've blacked out the name for privacy reasons, but this is what I started with…

As you can see, I've pinned the bottom up, using a technique I saw in a gift bag tutorial on Pinterest. Obviously, some adjustments had to be made, since this is a t-shirt and not paper. Places that were taped would some how have to be sewed. Maybe to some of you more skilled seamstresses out there, it would be an obvious answer, but it took me a little figuring. This whole project took me longer to pin and cut than it did to actually sew. Anyway, here is a step-by-step diagramming for you that might be interested in replicating. I don't have specific measurements, as I eyeballed it as I went based on what I thought might work. I can tell you that I started with a Men's size Medium t-shirt

Pinned at the bottom "gift bag style," ready for sewing

Cut along the seams in the shoulders to split the shirt evenly at the top.

Roughly cut off the sleeves to get them out of the way

(at this point, I put the shirt in my machine and sewed the bottom)

Cut right above the pocket, or if no pocket, cut across at the bottom of the sleeve.

At this point I realized I couldn't make the pocket work in it's original location. I pulled out my seam ripper and carefully removed it, salvaging it for transplant elsewhere. Then I cut right across the shirt at the bottom of the sleeve seam.

At this point, you could hem the top edge, at some tabs to the side, relocate the pocket and call it good. BUT, I just couldn't leave it completely orange. I happened to have some black chevron fabric lying around, so I decided to add the bow I learned to make from Whitney's blog. (I did not use her exact measurements, just the concept) Her bag is much prettier, and looking back, I probably should've adjusted my bow to look more like hers. ah well.

(I also cut the carry tabs here so I could sew into the top seam for reinforcement)

See that re-located pocket??? :-)

And finally, adding the bow.

That's it! All set for our walk on Sunday! This project literally cost me NOTHING. I hate those posts that proclaim to be FREE and really aren't. Obviously, I used things I had at my house. If you had the t-shirt and sewing notions (two colors of thread--I used orange and black), this project would be free for you as well. However, the bow requires some fabric, which you would either have to purchase or have on hand. So, for those of you without scraps or extras, not FREE, but pretty CHEAP! Hope you enjoy! 

--Shannon

Welcome!

Hello everyone and welcome to my Artful Side. I'm new to the blogging world, the video world--all of it really. I've recently taken up art journaling, after many years of wondering, researching, watching everyone else's videos, etc. I've always been creative and crafty--I have a music degree, I'm a pro photographer, I've scrapbooked and love anything DIY--so art journaling intrigued me.

The thing that I most love of art journaling is that it breaks all of the rules. My rules, really. It is so perfectly imperfect. And I love that. I loved to scrapbook, but I always felt that my pages were just, eh, which led to me completing less and less of them as time went on. Oh, but don't think I didn't give it a go, I did. I used to spend hours (during my single and kidless phase) with other scrapbookers in a back room of my favorite shop, working on page after page, spread out across the table, knee deep in paper and photographs. But I just lost it. It required so much energy, time and MONEY, it was ridiculous. And it just started to feel like work.

Enter, art journaling. I've taken to YouTube lately (not for the animal videos or clever memes), and found a lot of inspiration and creativity. Admittedly, I've used a lot of tips found over on Jennibellie's blog (isn't she amazing???!!!). But I've also been so impressed with other blogs and vlogs I've come across--so many creative people!

So here I am, creating and creating, and trying to learn the craft in my own private space, rather than in a group work area. I think I'm finally at the point where I'm willing to emerge and share some of what I've done with the world. Hopefully the world will be kind to my rookie self. So here it goes…. my first video on YouTube! Just a simple one, to get my feet wet and experiment with the idea of making a video, and of course to figure out the camera and edits. I hope you enjoy it!

-Shannon